New to Gardening, few Q's

Kahlua · January 16, 2012

Hello folks, my name is Michael and I'm new on the scene to growing vegetables and have been pointed here by a friend for good advice.

So last year I grew strawberries in a vertical planter, they were delicious, but pretty pitiful. I also grew a few different types of basil in a window box and enjoyed having fresh herbs to cook with.

This year, I'm wanting to gain a little more output from my small apartment balcony. I've got a few questions regarding container planting, and gardening as a whole.

First, my balcony is east-northeast facing, so I get the morning sun til about noon (in Alabama) directly, but then after it goes into the shade it's still pretty bright back there until late in the day, but no direct sun. I'm worried that it's not going to be enough sun for any real production.

Second - I built 2 boxes and 2 buckets to grow some stuff in, and am going to build a big vertical PVC planter for strawberries and lettuces. I'm curious about the maximum capacity of the boxes/buckets. I did the basic 18 gallon containers, and then 5 gallon buckets. I want tomatoes, eggplants, peppers (bell and some hot) and cucumbers mainly. I was planning on building a separate box type planter out of wood that can go against the wall of the building, and use that for the cukes so I can set up a trellis for them to grow.
So I guess my real question is - can I grow more than 2 tomato plants in an 18 gallon box?
For peppers, it looks like 4-5 is about the max.
I would ideally like to do 4-5 tomato plants in order to hopefully produce some decent fruit in my first year - and to maybe make up for my inexperience with more chances for things to work.

My last question involves soil. I bought a big bag of potting mix, and some perlite for a hydroponic experiment inside, and I was going to mix a couple cups in with the big bag of potting mix, but I feel like I need some compost or manure or something to mix in with it as well. I also read somewhere that epsom salts are great for tomatoes, so I was going to add some of that into wherever the maters are grown.

So, tips, pointers, things to be careful of, things not to worry about, etc.

Thanks!

Michael

Dewayne mater · January 17, 2012

Michael:

Welcome. Good luck in your endeavors. It sounds like you saying you're tomatoes will get 4 to 5 hours max of direct sunlight. My guess is the plants will grow, be very leggy, and produce a few tomatoes, but they will take forever to ripen and will be mealy and tasteless. I could be wrong, but, that is what happened to me in my first attempt at a Garden on the north side of my house, which had similar sunlight time frames. I'm not sure about other plants, so I'll let others discuss that with you.

As for more than one plant in the 18 gallon container, others may tell you differently, but, I think one tomato plant is the max. Beyond that, you are likely to stunt the growth and production of the plants, but, that is based only on reading what others have said in this forum...haven't tried that myself.

I suggests you search and read as many threads in here as you can as there is a vast wealth of knowledge and experience that has been shared and continues to be shared by folks with the most knowledge about tomatoes as you will find anywhere sharing of their time to educate the regular joes like me. Good luck.

Dewayne mater.

Kahlua · January 17, 2012

It looks like I need to convince my apartment manager to let me grow them on the south side of the building then so they can get sunlight all day.

Are there certain veggies that will do better with less sun?

dice · January 23, 2012

About the container media:
http://oregonstate.edu/dept/nursery-...roperties.html

(This is a commercial grower perspective. Bagged container mixes
use a lot more peat than bark. These growers must be getting the bark
in bulk from landscape suppliers and mixing it themselves. But the
explanation of air space, porosity, water holding capacity, and so on
in this document applies no matter what media you actually use.)

rockhound · January 24, 2012

That's some good info in that link Dice. I had to read thru it twice to get it all but it's making sense now

janezee · January 27, 2012

http://www.examiner.com/green-cultur...-partial-shade

http://www.motherearthnews.com/shade...m0z11zsto.aspx

The MEN site is sometimes a little slow. These are the sites I send folks to who ask this question. You are not alone in this quest!

j

Keiththibodeaux · January 27, 2012

How wonderful to be new to gardening. You have such a journey ahead of you. Don't rush it, enjoy every step.

January 16, 2012	#1
Kahlua Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2012 Location: Birmingham, AL Posts: 7	New to Gardening, few Q's Hello folks, my name is Michael and I'm new on the scene to growing vegetables and have been pointed here by a friend for good advice. So last year I grew strawberries in a vertical planter, they were delicious, but pretty pitiful. I also grew a few different types of basil in a window box and enjoyed having fresh herbs to cook with. This year, I'm wanting to gain a little more output from my small apartment balcony. I've got a few questions regarding container planting, and gardening as a whole. First, my balcony is east-northeast facing, so I get the morning sun til about noon (in Alabama) directly, but then after it goes into the shade it's still pretty bright back there until late in the day, but no direct sun. I'm worried that it's not going to be enough sun for any real production. Second - I built 2 boxes and 2 buckets to grow some stuff in, and am going to build a big vertical PVC planter for strawberries and lettuces. I'm curious about the maximum capacity of the boxes/buckets. I did the basic 18 gallon containers, and then 5 gallon buckets. I want tomatoes, eggplants, peppers (bell and some hot) and cucumbers mainly. I was planning on building a separate box type planter out of wood that can go against the wall of the building, and use that for the cukes so I can set up a trellis for them to grow. So I guess my real question is - can I grow more than 2 tomato plants in an 18 gallon box? For peppers, it looks like 4-5 is about the max. I would ideally like to do 4-5 tomato plants in order to hopefully produce some decent fruit in my first year - and to maybe make up for my inexperience with more chances for things to work. My last question involves soil. I bought a big bag of potting mix, and some perlite for a hydroponic experiment inside, and I was going to mix a couple cups in with the big bag of potting mix, but I feel like I need some compost or manure or something to mix in with it as well. I also read somewhere that epsom salts are great for tomatoes, so I was going to add some of that into wherever the maters are grown. So, tips, pointers, things to be careful of, things not to worry about, etc. Thanks! Michael

January 23, 2012	#4
dice Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2007 Location: PNW Posts: 4,743	About the container media: http://oregonstate.edu/dept/nursery-...roperties.html (This is a commercial grower perspective. Bagged container mixes use a lot more peat than bark. These growers must be getting the bark in bulk from landscape suppliers and mixing it themselves. But the explanation of air space, porosity, water holding capacity, and so on in this document applies no matter what media you actually use.) __________________ -- alias

January 17, 2012	#2
Dewayne mater Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2008 Location: DFW, Texas Posts: 1,212	Michael: Welcome. Good luck in your endeavors. It sounds like you saying you're tomatoes will get 4 to 5 hours max of direct sunlight. My guess is the plants will grow, be very leggy, and produce a few tomatoes, but they will take forever to ripen and will be mealy and tasteless. I could be wrong, but, that is what happened to me in my first attempt at a Garden on the north side of my house, which had similar sunlight time frames. I'm not sure about other plants, so I'll let others discuss that with you. As for more than one plant in the 18 gallon container, others may tell you differently, but, I think one tomato plant is the max. Beyond that, you are likely to stunt the growth and production of the plants, but, that is based only on reading what others have said in this forum...haven't tried that myself. I suggests you search and read as many threads in here as you can as there is a vast wealth of knowledge and experience that has been shared and continues to be shared by folks with the most knowledge about tomatoes as you will find anywhere sharing of their time to educate the regular joes like me. Good luck. Dewayne mater.

January 24, 2012	#5
rockhound Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Tennessee Posts: 285	That's some good info in that link Dice. I had to read thru it twice to get it all but it's making sense now

January 27, 2012	#6
janezee Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Dec 2011 Location: Whidbey Island, WA Zone 7, Sunset 5 Posts: 931	http://www.examiner.com/green-cultur...-partial-shade http://www.motherearthnews.com/shade...m0z11zsto.aspx The MEN site is sometimes a little slow. These are the sites I send folks to who ask this question. You are not alone in this quest! j

January 27, 2012	#7
Keiththibodeaux Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jun 2011 Location: Louisiana Posts: 587	How wonderful to be new to gardening. You have such a journey ahead of you. Don't rush it, enjoy every step.